The mega-neobank steps closer to an OCC charter.

Mercury has filed with the Office of the Comptroller of Currency (OCC) for a national bank charter and applied to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for deposit insurance. By obtaining a bank charter, Mercury will de-risk by eliminating the need for partner banks and putting banking services entirely under its control. Partnerships between fintechs that are bank lookalikes and sponsor banks are giving way to the next wave of licensed financial institutions (FIs) and a new definition of “traditional banking.”

PayPal filed to form PayPal Bank with the FDIC and Utah Department of Financial Institutions. Banks and credit unions should anticipate expanded interest-bearing offerings from PayPal Pay Later if its license is approved. And PayPal has a built-in advantage because its buy button and credit underwriting can all happen during the checkout process—whereas banks and credit unions have to rely on consumers applying for a loan well before they intend to complete a transaction. Credit unions should emphasize their competitive interest rates to consumers choosing between their loan products or a PayPal loan.

Consumer loan volume and credit risk are getting harder to gauge as lending moves away from banks and into alternative consumer lending. One estimate says that private funding for consumer lending fintechs could support almost $140 billion in global lending over several years. FIs’ general disinterest in riskier borrowers means that they migrate to fintechs, which may retain the risk or shift it to banks and investors in ways that reveal little about borrowers on the hook for repayment. If the trend continues, widespread defaults could hit the financial system, and few will know exactly what to expect.

Lloyds Banking Group will acquire Curve, a London-based digital wallet. Acquiring Curve is a valuable first step toward embracing digital wallet payments solutions. However, Lloyds faces a challenge of incentivizing its users to choose Curve over competitors like PayPal and Klarna, which have established rewards systems. Embedding features and perks into Curve could help create a flywheel effect to trap more volume within its ecosystem.

Block’s latest earnings report revealed strong performance from Cash App, in contrast to Square's disappointing results. Banks once feared that neobanks would usurp them, but it’s now clear that these fintechs primarily compete with each other. After consolidating industry niches, they’ve scaled rapidly—expanding their product offerings as they fight for the same consumers.

Dave reported $150.8 million in revenue in Q3 2025, up 63% YoY, and a net income of $92 million. The neobank reported 843,000 new members, a 25% increase in debit card spend to $510 million, short-term advance loan originations of $2 billion, and a customer acquisition cost (CAC) of $19. Neobanks’ original positioning as scrappy underdogs fighting the good fight against banks has transformed. It is now a story about how neobanks carved out a new niche catering to underserved customers, mostly competing with other neobanks.

The option can help boost customer engagement and build its brand awareness among potential new customers

The service advances Block’s goal of “banking our base” and could drive Cash App adoption.

The law enforcement agency is seeking civil penalties against the neobank, replacing the FTC’s original lawsuit.

Payment providers are tapping genAI to personalize marketing offers and virtual assistants while streamlining customer checkout. These tools could help providers monetize transaction data and help merchants drive sales.

All banks feel the hit to their bottom lines, but smaller banks hurt the most. Here’s how they’re redesigning their approach to overdrafts.

Monzo and Chip claim profitability, but UK conditions make their future outlook uncertain.

The Big Tech firm’s financial ecosystem boasts a larger user base, but FIs offer different value propositions.

On today's episode, we break down everything there is to know about banking and the Gen Z demographic. In our “Headlines” segment, we discuss the article our analyst Tyler Brown published a few weeks ago about Greenlight, a neobank for kids, teens, and families. In “Story by Numbers,” the conversation revolves around why Gen Z is different from other generations and how banks need to cater to their mobile preferences. And in “For Argument’s Sake,” host Rob Rubin takes the position that in 10 years, there will be fewer than 500 consumer banks. Tune in to the conversation between Rubin and analysts Tyler Brown and Tiffani Montez.

Since MPs pointed out incumbents’ failure to pass along higher interest rates to customers, at least 4 neobanks have upped their rates.

We take a look at how Goldman Sachs’ consumer banking business, Marcus, went from a major bank initiative to being dismantled in a reorg.

We comb through Nubank’s Q3 earnings and summarize what they mean for neobanks and Latin American fintech.

The feature lets users pay with crypto via their Revolut card. Here’s why it may struggle with adoption.

Citizens will be able to take out loans up to $30,000. The bank plans to offer even more services at post office locations soon.